Guidelines for Professional Conduct

Indigenous Governance and the Faculty of Human and Social Development expects students to develop and adhere to a professional code of conduct. The Faculty supports models for professional conduct based on the following guidelines:

Submission of oneself to a professional code of ethics;

Exercise of personal discipline, accountability and judgment;

Acceptance of personal responsibility for continued competency and learning;

Willingness to serve the communities and place them before oneself;

Ability to recognize the dignity and worth of all persons in any level of society;

Willingness to assist others in learning;

Ability to recognize one's own limitations;

Maintenance of confidentiality of information appropriate to the purposes and trust given when that information was acquired;

Acceptance that one's professional abilities, personal integrity and the attitudes one demonstrates in relationships with other persons are the measure of professional conduct.

UNPROFESSIONAL CONDUCT

Students in the Faculty of Human and Social Development are subject to the provisions of the code of ethics of their respective programs, and may be required to withdraw from their program for violating these provisions. Students may also be required to withdraw from their program when ethical, medical or other reasons interfere with satisfactory practice in their respective disciplines.

Disciplinary Procedure for Unprofessional Conduct

STEP ONE: If an issue concerning unprofessional conduct arises in the classroom, the instructor shall:

Try to resolve the issue with the students within seven days of the issue arising;

Inform the student clearly of the behavior needing correcting and the consequence should the behavior not be corrected (requirement to withdraw temporarily or permanently);

Give the student an opportunity to explain the issue or inappropriate behavior and;

The student shall explain how they will take steps to correct the behavior in the future.

If a report of unprofessional conduct is made to any IGOV staff or faculty, the issue shall be reported to the IGOV Director. The Director will follow the procedure outlined above.

STEP TWO: If an issue concerning unprofessional conduct continues to occur in or outside of the classroom after step one has taken place:

The instructor shall inform the student of the inappropriateness of their behavior and make a written submission to the Director and copy this to the student. The written submission shall outline the specifics of the issue (where, when and what) and outline the steps they took to make the student aware of the behavior in the first instance. This must be completed within seven days of the second occurrence. The record will be kept in the students file.

The student will be required to present their case to the IGOV Director and outline the steps they plan to take in order to correct their behavior. The student will be required to provide the Director with the outline in writing. This will be kept in the students file.

The committee will aid the student in seeking any appropriate outside assistance that they may need such as the aboriginal counselor, medical doctor, etc.

The Director shall inform the student of the consequence of further unprofessional conduct, i.e. a requirement to withdraw either temporarily or permanently (depending on the severity of the behavior or issue).

STEP THREE: If an issue concerning unprofessional conduct continues to occur in or outside of the classroom after step two has taken place:

The instructor (in classroom) or Director shall inform the student of the inappropriateness of their behavior and make a written submission to the Director and copy this to the student. The written submission shall outline the specifics of the issue (where, when and what) and outline the steps they took to make the student aware of the behavior in the second instance. This must be completed within seven days of the second occurrence. The record will be kept in the students file.

The student will be required to present their case to a commitee that will include the IGOV Director and a member of the program's Local Indigenous Advisory Council.

The committee will decide on an appropriate measure of discipline. The student may be required to withdraw temporarily (immediately) or permanently (immediately) depending on the severity of the behavior. If required to withdraw permanently the student may make no formal or informal association with the program in the future.

The committee will aid the student in seeking any outside assistance that they may need such as the Indigenous counselor, medical doctor etc.

STEP FOUR: If a student is required to withdraw temporarily and is readmitted after a probationary period and the behavior persists, the student will be required to withdraw immediately - and permanently - and may make no formal or informal association with the program in the future.

APPEALS PROCEDURE

If the student is dissatisfied with the decision made by the IGOV committee, then the student can appeal to the Dean (or Associate Dean) of the Faculty in writing, stating clearly the grounds on which the student believes the decision of being required to withdraw from the program should be changed and the remedy or relief the student is seeking. The student also must indicate whether they are asking for an appeal with or without a hearing committee. For further information on the HSD appeals procedure please contact the Dean, Faculty of Human and Social Development, University of Victoria.

Who We are

Taiaiake AlfredProfessor

Taiaiake Alfred is from Kahnawá:ke in the Mohawk Nation. He is a full Professor in the Faculty of Human and Social Development, and has taught at UVic since 1994.

Jeff Corntassel (Cherokee Nation), received his Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Arizona in 1998, and is currently Associate Professor and Graduate Advisor in Indigenous Governance at the University of Victoria.

Contact Information

Our Programs

Master of Arts in Indigenous Governance (MAIG)

The Master of Arts in Indigenous Governance (MAIG) is an interdisciplinary program focused on traditional structures and ways of governance and encompassing the values, perspectives, concepts, and principles of Indigenous political cultures. Through teaching and research that respects both western and Indigenous traditions, methods, and forms of knowledge, students are provided with a strong foundation of basic and applied scholarly research with an emphasis on the nature and context of Indigenous governance and Indigenous-State relations in Canada and internationally.

PhD Degree by Special Arrangement

The Faculty of Graduate Studies along with the Indigenous Governance Program (IGOV) offers the selected opportunities for students to pursue a PhD degree by Special Arrangement. The Special Arrangement degree program is available for Indigenous Governance students, as the program does not currently offer a regular Ph.D. degree program. For more information about this program.